unit 1
Part I
Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a short essay entitled Say No to Pirated Products. You should write at least 150 words following the outline given below。
1.目前盗版的现象比较严重;
2.造成这种现象的原因及其危害;
3.我们应该怎么做。
Useful words and expressions：
盗 版：piracy(n。)
盗版产品：pirated products
知识产权：intellectual property rights
侵犯版权：infringe sb.'s copyright;copyright infringement
Part ⅡReading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning) (15 minutes)
Directions: In this part, you will have 15 minutes to go over the passage quickly and answer the questions on the Answer Sheet。
For questions I - 4, mark
Y( for YES) if the statement agrees with the information given in the passage;
N( for NO) if the statement contradicts the information given in the passage;
NG( for NOT GIVEN) if the information is not given in the passage。
For questions 5-10, complete the sentences with the information given in the passage。
Rain forests
Tropical rainforests are the most diverse ecosystem (生态系统) on Earth, and also the oldest. Today, tropical rainforests cover only 6 percent of the Earth's ground surface, but they are home to over half of the planet’s plant and animal species。
What Is a Rainforest?
Generally speaking, a rainforest is an environment that receives high rainfall and is dominated by tall trees. A wide range of ecosystems fall into this category, of course. But most of the time when people talk about rainforests, they mean the tropical rainforests located near the equator。
These forests receive between 160 and 400 inches of rain per year. The total annual rainfall is spread pretty evenly throughout the year, and the temperature rarely dips below 60 degrees Fahrenheit。
This steady climate is due to the position of rainforests on the globe. Because of the orientation of the Earth's axis, the Northern and Southern hemispheres each spend part of the year tilted away from the sun. Since rainforests are at the middle of the globe, located near the equator, they arc not especially affected by this change. They receive nearly the same amount of sunlight, and therefore heat, all year. Consequently, the weather in these regions remains fairly constant。
The consistently wet, warm weather and ample sunlight give plant life everything it needs to thrive. Trees have the resources to grow to tremendous heights, and they live for hundreds, even thousands, of years. These giants, which reach 60 to 150 ft in the air, form the basic structure of the rainforest. Their top branches spread wide in order to capture maximum sunlight. This creates a thick canopy (树冠) level at the top of the forest, with thinner greenery levels underneath. Some large trees grow so tall that they even tower over the canopy layer。
As you go lower, down into the rainforest, you find less and less greenery. The forest floor is made up of moss, fungi, and decaying plant matter that has fallen from the upper layers. The reason for this decrease in greenery is very simple the overabundance of plants gathering sunlight at the top of the forest blocks most sunlight from reaching the bottom of the forest, making it difficult for robust plants to thrive。
The, Forest for the Trees
The ample sunlight and extremely wet climate of many tropical areas encourage the growth of towering trees with wide canopies. This thick top layer of the rainforest dictates the lives of all other plants in the forest. New tree seedlings rarely survive to make it to the top unless some older trees die, creating a "hole" in the canopy. When this happens, all of the seedlings on the ground level compete intensely to reach the sunlight。
Many plant species reach the top of the forest by climbing the tall trees. It is much easier to ascend this way, because the plant doesn't have to form its own supporting structure。
Some plant species, called epiphytes, grow directly on the surface of the giant trees. These plants, which include a variety of orchids and ferns, make up much of the understory, the layer of the rainforest right below the canopy. Epiphytes are close enough to the top to receive adequate light, and the runoff from the canopy layer provides all the water and nutrients(养分)they need, which is important since they don't have access to the nutrients in the ground。
Stranglers and Buttresses
Some epiphytes eventually develop into stranglers. They grow long, thick roots that extend down the tree trunk into the ground. As they continue to grow, the roots form a sort of web structure all around the tree. At the same time, the strangler plant's branches extend upward, spreading out into the canopy. Eventually, the strangler may block so much light from above, and absorb such a high percentage of nutrients from the ground below, that the host tree dies。
Competition over nutrients is almost as intense as competition for light. The excessive rainfall rapidly dissolves nutrients in the soil making it relatively infertile except at the top layers. For this reason, rainforest tree roots grow outward to cover a wider area, rather than downward to lower levels. This makes rainforest trees somewhat unstable, since they don't have very strong anchors in the ground. Some trees compensate for this by growing natural buttresses. These buttresses are basically tree trunks that extend out from the side of the tree and clown to the ground, giving the tree additional support。
Rainforest trees are dependent on bacteria that are continually producing nutrients in the ground. Rainforest bacteria and trees have a very close, symbiotic (共生的) relationship. The trees provide the bacteria with food, in the form of fallen leaves and other material, and the bacteria break this material down into the nutrients that the trees need to survive。
One of the most remarkable things about rainforest plant life is its diversity. The temperate rainforests of the Pacific Northwest are mainly composed of a dozen or so tree species. A tropical rainforest, on the other hand, might have 300 distinct tree species。
All Creatures, Great and Small
Rainforests are home to the majority of animal species in the world. And a great number of species who now live in other environments, including humans, originally inhabited the rainforests. Researchers estimate that in a large rainforest area, there may be more than 10 million different animal species。
Most of these species have adapted for life in the upper levels of the rainforest, where food is most plentiful. Insects, which can easily climb or fly from tree to tree, make up the largest group (ants are the most abundant animal in the rainforest). Insect species have a highly symbiotic relationship with the plant life in a rainforest. The insects move from plant to plant, enjoying the wealth of food provided there. As they travel, the insects may pick up the plants' seeds, dropping them some distance away. This helps to disperse the population of the plant species over a larger area。
The numerous birds of the rainforest also play a major part in seed dispersal. When they eat fruit from a plant, the seeds pass through their digestive system. By the time they excrete (排泄) the seeds, the birds may have flown many miles away from the fruit-bearing tree。
There are also a large number of reptiles and mammals in the rainforest. Since the weather is so hot and humid during the day, most rainforest mammals are active only at night, dusk or dawn. The many rainforest bat species are especially well adapted for this lifestyle. Using their sonar, bats navigate easily through the mass of trees in the rainforest, feeding on insects and fruit。
While most rainforest species spend their lives in the trees, there is also a lot of life on the forest floor. Great apes, wild pigs, big cats and even elephants can all be found in rainforests. There are a number of people who live in the rainforests, as well. These tribes--which, up until recently, numbered in the thousands--are being forced out of the rainforests at an alarming rate because of deforestation。
Deforestation
In the past hundred years, humans have begun destroying rainforests at an alarming rate. Today, roughly 1.5 acres of rainforest are destroyed every second. People are cutting down the rainforests in pursuit of three major resources:
land for crops
lumber for paper and other wood products
land for livestock pastures
In the current economy, people obviously have a need for all of these resources. But almost all experts agree that, over time, we will suffer much more from the destruction of the rainforests than we will benefit。
The world's rainforests are an extremely valuable natural resource, to be sure, but not for their lumber or their land. They are the main cradle of life on Earth, and they hold millions of unique life forms that we have yet to discover. Destroying the rainforests is comparable to destroying an unknown planet we have no idea what we're losing. If deforestation continues at its current rate, the world's tropical rainforests will be wiped out within 40 years。
1. Virtually all plant and animal species on Earth can be found in tropical rainforests。
2. There is not much change in the weather in the tropical rainforests all the year round。
3. The largest number of rainforests in the world are located on the African continent。
4. Below the canopy level of a tropical rainforest grows an overabundance of plants。
5. New tree seedlings will not survive to reach the canopy level unless ______。
6. Epiphytes, which form much of the understory of the rainforest, get all their water and nutrients from ______。
7. Stranglers are so called because they ______ by blocking the sunlight and competing for the nutrients。
8. Since rainforest bacteria and trees depend on each other for life, the relationship they form is termed ______。
9. Plant species are dispersed over a large area with the help of ______。
10. As we are still ignorant of millions of unique life forms in the rainforest, deforestation can be compared to the destruction of ______。
keys：
Part I
Say No to Pirated Products
Nowadays, the problem of piracy has become more and more serious. Books, tapes, VCDs and others high-tech products have been pirated. For instance, When a new product comes onto market, most probably, its pirated counterpart will soon put on its appearance in the market, too。
Piracy has caused a great loss to legitimate producers, inventors and writers in many ways. To start with, the pirated products often cost much less than the genuine ones so that they enjoy a better trading position in spite of their relatively poor quality. The genuine products, on the contrary, sell poorly. What's worse, pirated books sometimes do great harm to the authors' reputation due to some misprints. In the long run, pirated products may have a negative impact on customers. Those legitimate producers' creativity and enthusiasm may be deeply hurt by the fact that some customers are more interested in the pirated products for the sake of small gains。
In my opinion, it's high time that everyone started the battle against piracy. First, customers should develop their consciousness to resist the pirated products. Second, the government should take effective measures to put an end to piracy. Finally, laws must be strictly enforced to completely, ban piracy. Only in this way can we wipe the pirated products out of our life。
Part Ⅱ Reading Comprehension (Skimming and Scanning)
1. N 2. Y 3. NG 4. N
5. some older trees die
6. the canopy layer
7. kill the host tree
8. symbiotic
9. insects and birds/insects/birds/animals
10. an unknown planet
unit 2
1. Wearing a seat belt saves lives; it reduces your chance of death or serious injury by more than half.
2. But it will be the driver’s responsibility to make sure that children under 14 do not ride in the front unless they are wearing a seat belt of some kind.
3. However, you do not have to wear a seat belt if you are reversing your vehicle; or you are making a local delivery or collection using a special vehicle; or if you have a valid medical certificate which excuses you from wearing it.
4. Remember you may be taken to court for not doing so, and you may be fined if you cannot prove to the court that you have been excused from wearing it.
5. Professor Taiju Matsuzawa wanted to find out why otherwise healthy farmers in northern Japan appeared to be losing their ability to think and reason at a relatively early age, and how the process of ageing could he slowed down.
6. With a team of colleagues at Tokyo National University, he set about measuring brain volumes of a thousand people of different ages and varying occupations.
7. Computer technology enabled the researchers to obtain precise measurements of the volume of the front and side sections of the brain, which relate to intellect (智能) and emotion, and determine the human character.
8. Contraction of front and side parts as cells die off was observed in some subjects in their thirties, but it was still not evident in some sixty and seventy-year-olds.
9. The findings show in general terms that contraction of the brain begins sooner in people in the country than in the towns.
10. White collar workers doing routine work in government offices are, however, as likely to have shrinking brains as the farm worker, bus driver and shop assistant.
keys：
1、系好安全带能够挽救性命，它能将丧生和重伤的概率减少一半以上。
2、但是司机有责任确保14岁以下的孩子不要坐在前排，除非他们系好了安全带。
3、当然，如果有以下情况你可以不系安全带：你在倒车时，或者你用一种特殊交通工具进行当地的货物运送、收集时，或者你有合法的医学证明你不能系安全带时。
4、注意你如果不这么做(系安全带)的话，你有可能被告上法庭，而且你有可能被处以罚款除非你能证明你有不带安全带的理由。
5、Taiju Matsuzawa教授想找出为什么日本北部的健康农民在相对年轻的年龄就显得开始失去思考与推理的能力的原因以及怎样才能延缓老化过程。
6、在东京国立大学的同事们的帮助下，他开始对一千来自不同职业的人群进行了大脑体积的测量。
7、计算机技术帮助研究人员获得人脑前部和侧部的准确体积，这是与人的智能和情绪有关的部分，而且也决定人的性格特点。
8、有的人(大脑)前部和侧部的收缩——随着细胞的死亡——在三十多岁时就能被观察到了，但是也有些人直到六七岁依然不明显。
9、研究结果表明在农村的人大脑收缩基本上比城市里的人要早。
10、在政府部门从事简单重复工作的白领也像农场工人、公共汽车司机和商店职员一样大脑细胞容易收缩。
Part A
Directions: In this part of the test, you will hear 2 passages in English. After you have heard each paragraph, interpret it into Chinese. Start inter preting at the signal……and stop it at the signal……You may take notes while you are listening. Remember you will hear the passages ONLY ONCE. Now let’s begin Part A with the first passage.
Passage 1:
London, the capital of the United Kingdom, has a population of about 7 million and an area of 1580 sq km. Although it no longer ranks among the world’s most populous cities, London is still one of the world’s great centers for classical and popular culture. For example, it has enjoyed a reputation for superb theater since the time of Shakespeare in the 16th century. //
London boasts many world-famous tourist attractions. The most impressive sight-seeing places include the Big Ben, the Oxford Street, and of course the Buckingham Palace, where thousands of tourists come to watch the pageantry, the Changing of Guards. London itself is a living museum, with more than 2000 years of history and culture. The jewel in this cultural crown is the British Museum, with more than 4 million exhibits.
Passage 2:
I am an optimist. As will be clear from what I have written, I think knowledge is a blessing, not a curse. This is especially true in the case of genetic knowledge. For example, with genetic knowledge, we’ll be able to understand the molecular nature of cancer for the first time, to diagnose and prevent Alzheimer’s and to discover the secrets of human history-all these seem to me to be immense blessings.//
It is true that genetics also brings the threat of new dangers, such as unequal insurance premiums for people of different genetic factors, new forms of biological warfare, and unexpected side effects of genetic engineering, but most of these dangers are either easily dealt with or extremely far-fetched. So I cannot agree to th4e fashionable pessimism about science, nor can I accept the idea of a world that turns its back on science.
keys：
Passage 1:
伦敦是联合王国的首都，人口700万，面积1580平方公里。今天的伦敦虽然已不再是世界人口最多的城市之一，但仍然是世界主要的古曲文化和通俗文化中心之一。例如，自16世纪莎士比亚时代起伦敦一直享有拥有一流剧院之美誉。//
伦敦拥有许多世界著名的旅游胜地，令人印象最深刻的观光景点有大自鸣钟、牛津街，当然还有白金汉宫，成千上万的旅游者到那里观看(皇家)卫队换岗典礼。伦敦自身就是一座活生生的博物馆，有着2000年的历史文化。大英博物馆则是镶刻在这顶文化皇冠上的一颗宝石，拥有400万余件展品。
Passage 2:
我是个乐观主义者。正如我写的文字中将明确显示的，我认为知识是一种赐福，而不是灾祸。这在遗传知识方面尤为如此。比如，有了遗传知识，我们首次了解癌症的分了了结构人，对老年痴呆作出诊断和预防，发现人类历史的奥秘—这一切在我看来是无上的福祉。//
的确，遗传学也会带来新的危险，诸如对具有不同遗传因素的人收取不平等的保险费，新式的生物战，以及遗传工程的难以预料的副作用等，但这些危险大多是容易对付的或离目前极为遥远的。因此我不会支持流行的对悲观看法，我也不会对这个世界拒绝科学的看法表示赞同。
unit 4
Part B
Directions: In this part of the test, you will hear 2 passages in English. After you have heard each paragraph, interpret it into Chinese. Start interpreting at the signal……and stop it at the singal……You may take notes while you are listening. Remember you will hear the passages ONLY ONCE. Now let's begin Part A with the first passage.
Passage 1:
Canadians have a strong and increasing involvement in a wide range of cultural activities throughout the country. The performing arts are well established, with professional and amateur companies active in music, drama and dance. Canadian writing and painting have achieved growing international recognition in recent years. The educational system in Canada strongly encourages music, drama and the visual arts at all levels.//
Canada has a comprehensive social security system for the aged, disabled, sick and unemployed. The federal and provincial health-care services, mostly supported by the government, are available to all Canadians. Public hospital treatment, prenatal and maternity service, and many medicines are government subsidized, as is dental treatment for children.
Passage 2 :
Distinguished delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, on behalf of New Zealand, I take the pleasure in welcoming you to the cultural, administrative, economic and financial center of New Zealand. I would like to extend my warmest greeting to all of you, delegates and representatives of international organizations involved in environmental protection, upon the opening of the Second Informal Meeting of the Environment Ministers.//
Environmental protection is very crucial. It is the priority of the government's agenda, In this sense, the Government of New Zealand has increased budget allocations for environmental management and provided opportunity to the Ministry of Environment to mobilize international support for the sector. Only during the last four years, government's budget for environmental protection has more than tripled.
Passage 3
我承认，要编写我们国家的历史，追溯到罗马建立伊始，这一任务让我顾虑重重。即使我对这项工作的价值充满信心，要这么说还是犹豫再三。我很明白史学家们爱唱高调，这向来司空见惯。每一位史学编写者往往对前人的工作嗤之以鼻，认为他们缺乏素养，心里暗自得意自己会在风格上有所突破，或取得新的历史发现。关于国家历史这一主题的作品不胜枚举，而我的作品可能湮没其中，不为人知。果真如此，前人巨著的伟大和精彩也会令我倍感欣慰。
此外，这项任务异常繁重。我要回顾到700多年前，从最初开始，一直追溯到近代，而这部分盘根错节，几乎无法详尽描述。现代社会问题重重，如果今世的作家对此过于心焦，即便不对真相有所掩盖，也难免受困于此。而如果我在潜心于古代研究时，能够不受这些问题的困扰，那恰恰体现了古代研究的价值所在。
keys：
Passage 1:
加拿大人非常并且越来越热心于参与全国各地各种各样的文化活动。由于音乐、戏剧和舞蹈专业队伍和业余团体十分活路，所以表演艺术有着良好的基础。近年来，加拿大的文学作品和绘画作品在国际上日益博得好评。教育系统大力扶持各层次的音乐、戏剧和影视艺术。//
加拿大为老年、塞住的残疾人、病人和失业者制定了一项综合社会保险计划。加拿大人可以享受联邦和省内健康医疗服务，这些服务大部分得到政府支持。公立医院汉疗、妇女妊娠、分娩和产后医疗以及许多医药，同小儿科一样均可行到政府补贴。
Passage 2:
尊敬的代表们、女士们、先生们：我很高兴能代表新西兰政府欢迎各位来到新西兰政治文化金融中心。值此第二届环境保护部长级非正式会议召开之际，我想对你们所有的人，尊敬的代表们和相关国际环保组织的代表们，表示最热诚的问候。//
环境保护非常重要。这是政府优先考虑的事项。为此，新西兰政府已增加了对环境保护的预算拨款并给环保部以机会来动员国际性支持。仅在过去四年里，政府对环保的预算拨款已增加了两倍多。
Passage 3
The task of writing a history of our nation from Rome's earliest days fills me, I confess, with some misgiving, and even were I confident in the value of my work, I should hesitate to say so. I am aware that for historians to make extravagant claims is, and always has been, all too common: every writer on history tends to look down his nose at his less cultivated predecessors, happily persuaded that he will better them in points of style, or bring new facts to light. Countless others have written on this theme and it may be that I shall pass unnoticed amongst them; if so, I must comfort myself with the greatness and splendor of my rivals.
My task, moreover, is an immensely laborious one. I shall have to go back more than seven hundred years, and trace my story from its small beginnings up to these recent times when its ramifications are so vast that any adequate treatment is hardly possible. I shall find antiquity a rewarding study, if only because, while I am absorbed in it, I shall be able to turn my eyes from the troubles which for so long have tormented the modern world, and to write without any of that over-anxious consideration which may well plague a writer on contemporary life, even if it does not lead him to conceal the truth.